"Unimpressed by nurses' attitudes at Aintree"

On being admitted by ambulance (paramedics where great) I had to undergo tests, ECG done swiftly then moved to wait to see a doctor, 3 hours later I get seen, bloods taken and moved to an assessment unit to await results.

One man, who I heard a nurse say was infectious, was in a single supposedly quarantine room. This did not stop the man wandering around touching other beds and equipment. Apart from one student nurse asking him to return to his room once, no other efforts where made to keep him in quarantine.

Patients were moved out of the unit and their beds filled by other patients, apparently without cleaning or washing down the beds first. This did not appear to be a staffing problem, as I could hear some nurses at the nurses station laughing and joking telling stories about the night before. In fact it sometimes sounded like they were having a party. In almost 12 hours before my discharge I was not offered any drinks, although I was not nil by mouth.

I'm afraid my view of nurses has drastically changed. On a previous stay at the same hospital some 12 years earlier the nurses were polite, courteous and had a pride in their job. My latest visit found some of the nurses I saw chewing gum, unresponsive and with a ‘couldn't care less’ cavalier attitude. They seemed to be lacking leadership or adequate supervision. The days of a Florence Nightingale vocational nurse seem to be replaced by people who just treat it as a job.